In a turn of events, the viewership ratings for 'What If...?' Season 3 have dropped lower than 'Secret Invasion'.
Marvel recently concluded its third and final season of What If...?, a popular MCU-adjacent multiverse series that used to have high critic scores. However, things have changed now. While the third season of What If...? hasn't fared too badly with critics, it has received poor audience ratings, placing it amongst the bottom tier of the MCU.
Here's the updated list of the poorest audience-rated MCU productions, though with some important considerations:
5) Captain Marvel – 45%
4) Secret Invasion – 43%
3) Inhumans – 42%
2) What If...? Season 3 – 37%
1) She-Hulk – 32%
It's worth noting that only these productions have a Rotten audience score in the MCU. Inhumans, despite its ties to Agents of SHIELD, doesn't really fall under the MCU canon and has largely been disregarded.
Captain Marvel and She-Hulk's poor ratings can partly be attributed to review bombing, particularly due to various controversies surrounding their lead actresses. Brie Larson's comments about male movie critics caused quite a stir, leading to a massive backlash against Captain Marvel. Similarly, She-Hulk was targeted in protests for its female-centric themes and strong feminist messaging.
Rotten Tomatoes introduced policies to verify audience movie scores to prevent such review bombing, but its TV audience ratings cannot be verified. So, while She-Hulk might not have been a standout production, its immense backlash and polarizing reception have made it the MCU's worst-rated show.
On the other hand, Secret Invasion and What If...? Season 3 failed to impress audiences due to their poor quality. The head writer of What If...? Season 3 is now working on the second season of X-Men ’97 after the original creator's dismissal due to alleged inappropriate behavior. His criticism of Season 3 on Twitter seems to suggest a personal grudge.
What If...? may be over, but Marvel is exploring more animation ventures, including the anticipated second season of X-Men ’97 and the upcoming animated series, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. Here's hoping these productions fare better than their recent hurdles.
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If the quality of What If...? had remained consistent, perhaps it wouldn't have ended up among the lowest-rated MCU productions. What if the head writer of Season 3 hadn't had a personal grudge affecting the show's narrative?
Despite the poor audience ratings, Marvel continues to explore animation ventures. What if these future projects manage to reverse the trend and deliver highly-rated content?
